Instagram is continually making updates to their platform in order to provide users and advertisers with a better experience. From the beginning of this month they have been rolling out new updates that every marketer should be aware of in order to pivot their strategy.

Facebook’s Recent Algorithm Change

Zuckerberg recently announced that Facebook’s algorithm was about to go through some major changes, specifically to their newsfeed. Facebook is pushing to revisit its roots by connecting users to more meaningful content and their connections who are posting this content. This means users will see less and less of posted content from businesses, brands, and media outlets. So how does this affect Instagram? Given that Instagram is already offering high engagement and a wide reach; marketers are anticipating a shift in attention from Facebook to Instagram. So what does this mean for you? Allocate more of your time and strategy to marketing on Instagram. Shift your focus on creating quality content, growing your followers, engaging with your audience, and performing hashtag research. By taking a proactive approach to Facebook’s changes your business can get ahead of the competition.

Following Hashtags

Instagram recently announced the capability of following hashtags. Rather than searching through hashtags to find new and relevant content; once you follow a hashtag that type of content will then become content that is regularly populated on your newsfeed. This effects marketers because brands now have a greater chance of their content to surfacing on more user’s feeds. Additionally, brands can now encourage their followers to follow their brand specific hashtags which then creates an even stronger opportunity for brands to put their content in front of user’s who are actually interested in their content. This allows brands to expand their organic reach tremendously.

Recommended for You

Instagram not too long ago began using a new “recommended for you” feature. This new section will show on user’s search page and displays content that the algorithm believes user’s will find of interest. It is populating this content based on posts that your friends have liked and based on other content that you follow. For example, if you follow a ton of food bloggers, Instagram will populate more content that involves food. Again, for brands this provides a huge opportunity for expansion of organic reach.

Active Users

Instagram’s latest new feature is showing user’s activity status. This information is only visible from the direct message screen and from those you have engaged with in a direct message. This new feature is set to “Show Activity Status” underneath your settings. To clarify this new feature does not show exact timing of when you were on the app but rather will display “active now” “active today.” If you disable this feature, unfortunately you won’t be able to see anyone else’s activity status either.

Instagram Supports GIFS in Stories

You have already probably seen the new GIFS available for IG stories. From dancing tacos to your favorite celebrities, the sticker options are endless thanks to the GIPHY integration. These new stickers provide marketers with even more opportunities to include fun and branded content in their stories and posts.

Scheduled Posts

The moment all marketers have been waiting for! Instagram now allows users to schedule posts in advance. In the past, the time of day you posted had an influence on the amount of engagement your post received. However, since the algorithm changed to include a variety of determining factor in one’s relevance on the newsfeed timing no longer plays such a crucial role. Nonetheless, Instagram recently announced its integration of API allowing third-party tools to enable post scheduling. This change will help marketers tremendously in automating this task, taking one more thing off of your plate.

Instagram already is a dominating player in social platforms and we forecast its use to skyrocket as Facebook continues to integrate their new algorithm. We anticipate Instagram to continually improve their platform making it an ideal space for both users and businesses. 10twelve can help your brand’s Instagram strategy keeping you ahead of the competition. Contact us today!